Two of the biggest entertainment studios in the world combine as Disney buys 21st Century Fox

As has been rumored for the past few weeks, Disney has officially bought 21st Century Fox for a total of $52.4 billion. This deal includes all of Fox’s film and television studios, cable and international TV businesses.

This now means that X-Men, Deadpool, Avatar, Alien, The Simpson and many more properties all live under the same roof as The Avengers, Star Wars and Pixar.

Before the buyout takes full effect, 21st Century Fox will separate the Fox Broadcasting network and stations and all of their news channels into a new media company — meaning Disney won’t be purchasing those.

“We believe the assets we are acquiring — the cable channels, sports networks — are fully complementary with our plans to go to direct to consumer,” Robert Iger, CEO of Disney, told CBS News. “We think that this basically fills in the blanks for us.”

Part of the reasoning behind this merger is Disney’s new streaming service. With all the 21st Century Fox properties now available to them, Disney will be strong competition against Netflix, Apple, Amazon, YouTube Red and all the other online streaming when their service launches.

Fox, however, made the deal because their studios have been struggling to keep pace with Disney and other major studios the past few years. As a result, their company will be downsized as operations are folded into Disney and refocused, according to The New York Times.

“The acquisition of this stellar collection of businesses from 21st Century Fox reflects the increasing consumer demand for a rich diversity of entertainment experiences that are more compelling, accessible and convenient than ever before,” Iger said via Variety.

He went on. “We’re honored and grateful that Rupert Murdoch has entrusted us with the future of businesses he spent a lifetime building, and we’re excited about this extraordinary opportunity to significantly increase our portfolio of well-loved franchise and branded content to really enhance our growing direct-to-consumer offerings. The deal will also substantially expand our international reach, allowing us to offer world-class storytelling and innovative distribution platforms to more consumers in key markets around the world.”

Rupert Murdoch, the man who controlled 21st Century Fox, will stay on as a part of the deal. His contract has been renewed until the end of 2021.

Furthermore, Disney will gain Fox’s overseas markets in Sky, another huge money maker, and a 30% stake in Hulu. They also now own the FX and National Geographic TV channels.

Fear now turns to as whether Disney is becoming a monopoly. Fox has been such a prominent studio for so long, the implications for this deal speak volumes about the power that Disney now possess.

There’s a lot to understand about the offer and a lot of questions that are now raised. So, in the comments below, tell us how you feel about the whole ordeal. Nervous? Angry? Or do you think this is good news?